Pupuan Rice Terraces Bali

Pupuan is located in the western part of Bali, a place to fill your eyes with awesome memories of great landscape accompanied by no one other than the friendly local farmers. If you travel from Denpasar, the road becomes less busy, less inhabited and with few tourists.

Driving in the highlands of Bali one will often come to an unexpected crossroads, marked by a sign with names of villages you’ve never heard of. Generally driving in the direction that is in accordance with the slope (down means south on the southern side of the island) will see you right. On occasion the sign will mention the next big town, which in our case could of been Pupuan, Seririt, Singaraja. It helps if you bring a map and familiarize yourself with 2 or 3 towns ahead on the route. Maps aren’t generally used by locals, who either know where somewhere is or they don’t. Showing a map of Bali to my father in law, he looked at it as if it was the first time he’d seen one. Naming the big spots we’d be going through for him, I hoped to make it easier for him to picture how the route was developing.

The weather in the highlands was sunny and warm while we took a cup of tea at Sanda Butik Villas. Expecting people to feel cold I packed 3 sweaters and warned them ahead of time. My relatives are still getting used to the western concept of economics and that extends to hotels and restaurants. People who are operating in survival mode (and I’ve lived in that mode for a long time myself) tend to see any extra expense as frivolous. Sitting quietly in Sanda Bukit Villas and enjoying the environment (its set in a old coffee plantation) allowed us to look around at the design and enjoy the moment.

The slopes in the area have, over the years, been turned into amazing and beautiful rice terraces, together with coffee groves and orchards. Off from the road, tropical forest with pristine waterfalls and even a hidden temple await nature lovers. Like many area away from the tourist crowds, Pupuan has only a few hotels. There are some resorts selling the exceptional setting of Pupuan; they provide quality lodging, which is worth the expense for travelers willing to indulge a little.